Police officers have a lot to deal with, and most have heard a lot of strange confessions, although there might still be cases that even freak the officers out. South Africa is known for its violence and high crime rate, and it comes as no surprise that this strange case made the headlines around the world. An African man basically walked into the police station and told the officers that he was now “tired” of consuming human flesh, which lead to his arrest and he was sentenced to life in prison after killing a South African woman for her body parts.

Traditional Dealer Gets Sentenced to Life in Prison

Traditional healer Nino Mbatha was charged for the murder of Zanele Hlatschwayo, both Mbatha and a second man by the name of Lungisani Magubane was found guilty by the high court in Pietermaritzburg for the murder. The judge, Peter Olsen, described the case as the most heinous of all crimes.

The whole case started when Mbatha the traditional leader simply walked into the Estcourt police station, Estcourt is a small town in KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, to announced that he urgently needed the assistance of the police. Once he had the attention of the officers, he simply told them that he had enough and was tired of consuming body parts.

Police First Thought Mbatha was Unstable

The two police officers who assisted Mbatha and listened to the story the healer had to tell, at first did not believe him as he appeared unstable. It was once Mbatha realised that the officers are not taking him seriously that he produced a human leg and hand from the bag he was carrying with him. A team of investigators was immediately sent to the house of the 33-year old healer where more body part was found.

Describes Mbatha’s Home as A Disgusting Mess

The judge describes the photograph of Mbatha’s home as a disgusting mess and the case have caused a major uproar in the community of Estcourt, residents are angry and gathered outside the courtroom every day of the hearing in protest of the hideous crime. Mbatha was in possession of the body parts of Hlatshwayo, which the judge rules duplicated the charge of murder. The healer was not charged with dealing in human body parts as he offered some of the body parts for sale, due to a lack of sufficient evidence.

The Estcourt community asked that the healer should be released so that they could kill him after he was sentenced to life in prison. The community continues to be furious about the sentence ruled by the judge in this case of cannibalism.

Traditional healers

The Pietermaritzburg area is known for traditional healers, and some sell body parts from a starting price of R4,000, which brought to light another case in which the high court sentenced two men for the brutal murder on a 17-year-old boy.